British spies trawl Ashley Madison leak for intelligence

British spy agencies have already checked the leaked records to see if their
own staff could be vulnerable to blackmail, but are also checking the data
for sensitive details of potential intelligence targets.

British spy agencies have already checked the leaked records to see if their own staff could be vulnerablePhoto: Getty Images/AFP

Intelligence agencies around the world are trawling leaked data from the Ashley Madison adultery website hack to glean personal information and even use it as a possible blackmail tool, sources have said.

British spy agencies have already checked the leaked records to see if their own staff could be vulnerable, but are also checking the data for details on potential intelligence targets.

The millions of worldwide accounts whose details have been stolen and leaked are likely to include members who hold jobs in sensitive areas of government and industry.

The leaked membership details of the site used by people to set up extramarital affairs could also now be checked when vetting those who need security clearance for sensitive posts.

A senior Government source said the data which has been published on the dark web was being checked by British agencies and was considered by spies around the world as a trove of potential information.

The source said: "We have been looking at it to see if our people are vulnerable. But there are also people looking at it to see how it can be used. Some countries will be looking at it for blackmail."

Details of people’s personal lives and online habits could also be used by spies plotting ways to approach them.

Nigel Inkster, a former assistant chief of MI6, said British intelligence agencies did not engage in blackmail, but “other intelligence agencies are less scrupulous”.

He said: “If you are looking at a person as a potential intelligence target, then of course knowing as much as possible about what’s missing from their lives and what they are doing to fill it is of potential interest.”

The source said the accounts set up using official email addresses are unlikely to be genuine.

Mr Inkster said the information could be used by security agencies wanting to vet people for clearance to access official secrets.

He said: “If you are looking at issues to do with vetting of personnel that are given security clearances, they would certainly want to know if those hints of vulnerability are there.”

“If you are looking at someone for security clearance, the fact of adultery per se is neither here nor there, it’s whether it could be exploited by a hostile intelligence agency.”

Eight people across the US who registered to use Ashley Madison are already suing the website, seeking unspecified damages, for what they claim was negligence, breach of contract and privacy violations. They say Ashley Madison failed to take reasonable steps to protect the security of its users, including those who paid a special fee to have their information deleted.